Machine for working the edge of packs of veneers



H. PALM May 10, 1960 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 23, 1958 INVENTO)? Hermann PaZm May 10, 1960 PALM 2,936,007

MACHINE FOR WORKING THE EDGE OF PACKS OF VENEERS Filed June 25, 1958 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 lNVE/VTOP He 7777mm Palm May 10, 1960 PALM 2,936,007

MACHINE FOR WORKING THE EDGE OF PACKS OF VENEERS Filed June 23, 1958 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 M f H M M y \w f :5 (have aria/f 193 30 [my/1 55 [anveyar INVEN P He rmann Palm H. PALM May 10, 1960 MACHINE FOR WORKING THE EDGE OF PACKS OF VENEERS Filed June 23, 1958 6 Sheets-Sheet 4 lNVENTOP WLMM ,May 10, 1960 PALM ,Filed June 23, 1958 MACHINE FOR WORKING THE EDGE OF PACKS 0F VENEERS 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 Hermann Palm May 10, 1960 2,936,007

MACHINE FOR WORKING THE EDGE OF PACKS 0F VENEERS Filed June 23, ,1958 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 INVENI'O/P Hermann Palm ATTY of the beams.

MACHINE FGR WONG THE EDGE OF PACKS OF VENEERS Hermann Palm, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany, assignor to Franz Torwegge, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany Appiication June 23, 195s, Serial No. 743,878

19 Claims. or. 144-117 The present invention relates to a machine for smoothing or milling the edges of veneers with a clamping device composed of pressing beams for sheets of veneer piled one on the other in the form of a pack, which clamping device is mounted so that it can pivot about an axis extending parallel to the longitudinal direction Such a machine also has a supporting table for laying the edges of the veneers flush.

An object of the invention is to improve a machine of this typeto enable one edge of a plurality'of stacked veneers to be worked simultaneously, and to again straighten up and work another edge of the veneers.

Another object of the invention is to provide a veneer edge smoothing machine in which the introduction of .the veneers into the machine and turning or reversing of the veneers is carried out to a great extent mechanically without any additional hand work.

According to the invention, a veneer edge smoothing machine comprises a clamping device composed of pressing beams for clamping packs of veneers pivotable about an axis extending substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the beams, a supporting table for aligning the edges of the packs of veneers, at least one tool for working the veneer edges, said clamping device being rotatable through an angle of 360 for smoothing the edges on both sides of the pack and said supporting table being shiftable out of the range of the veneers aligned in the smoothing plane to afford free passage to the tool.

In a preferred form of construction, the clamping device, one of the pressing beams of which canfbe moved in relation to the other which is stationary, is constructed so that it can be driven by means of a gearing for effecting at'a time a turning movement through 180 in means of which the veneers are placed on the supporting surface with their edges flush.

Several preferred embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. l is a front elevation of a machine for working veneer edges with pressing beams capable of being swung about a horizontal axis, and a supporting table;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the machine illustrated in Fig. 1; i

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line III-III of Fig. 1, the pressing beams being in operating position and the supporting table in raised position;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but with the supporting table in an intermediate position;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but with the pressing beams open and in horizontal position;

Fig. 6 is a similar view to Fig. 3, the opened pressing beams being in vertical position for receiving the veneers;

Fig. 7 is a top plan view of the same machine fitted with a feeding arrangement at its intake end and a discharging arrangement at its delivery end;

Fig. 8 is a sectional view through the same machine taken on line VIII-VIII of Fig. 7, the feeding device being in position for smoothing the edges of the veneers;

Fig. 9' is a view similar to that shown in Fig. 8 but with the feeding device placing the veneers, straightened up on one edge, between the open pressing beams;

Fig. 10 is a sectional View, on a larger scale, showing the feeding device with raised arms, and

Fig. 11 is a view similar to Fig. 10 but showing the discharging arrangement with raised arms.

Similar reference numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several figures.

Referring now to the drawings, Figs. 1 and 2 show a machine with a machine bed 1, which is mounted in uprights 2 and in which a tool carriage is arranged. This 'tool carriage consists of a lower support 3 and an upper support 4 slidable on the lower support 3 in a transverse ably arranged so that it can be raised and lowered and I may be provided with a shaking device.

The straightened up edges of the veneers are preferably worked by at least one dressing or smoothing tool such asa milling cutter or cutter head, which is arranged on a tool carriage movable to and fro in known manner along the edges o fthe veneers.

A machine for working the veneer edges and constructed in this manner can be equipped with a reciprocating feeding arrangement at its intake end and/ or adischarging arrangement at its delivery end, in which case arms of these arrangements'in one position engage between the pressing beams of the clamping device for introducing and removing the veneers respectively. These arms are mounted so that-they can be raised and lowered and engage in grooves or slots in the pressing beams.

To enable the veneers piled up on the arms to be laid flush at one edge before being inserted into the clamping device, the arms preferably fixed on a carriage of the feeding arrangement are pivotally mounted More:

direction. A rough smoothing tool (rough cutter) 5, a finishing or dressing tool (finishing cutter) 6, a driving motor 7 and a glue applying device 8 are provided in the upper support 4. The tools 5 and 6 are arranged overhung. Between the machine uprights 2, pressing beams 10 and 11 are arranged as a clamping device for the veneer sheets to be worked. The pressing beam 11 is movable in relation to the pressing beam 10, which is stationary. Both the pressing beams are, however, capable of turning together about a horizontal axis in the machine uprights 2, namely in journals 12 and 13. A hydraulic device 14 serves for shifting the pressing beam 11 in relation to the pressing beam 10 and comprises a piston and 'a cylinder and acts upon a lever system 15. The turning of the two pressing beams 10 and 11 about the journals 12 and 13 is effected with the aid of a motor 16, the turning movement being regulated by a cam disk 17 and two control abutments 18 and 19.

Below the pressing beams 10 and 11 a supporting table 20 is arranged which is adjustable in height with the aid of 'a lever system 21 and a compressed :air cylinder 22. This supporting table 20 is equipped with a shaking device (not shown).

Figs. 3 and 4 show a carrier table 23 which is provided on the front of the machine and can be tipped about a pivot 25 with the aid of a pressure medium cylinder 24.

Further details of the invention will become apparent from the following description of the manner in which the machine operates. i

A pile of veneer sheets 52'to be worked on the machine is fed by. a conveyor belt 30 in the manner shown in 26 is released, with the result that the pile of veneer sheets drops between the open pressing beams 10 and 11 onto the supporting table 20 which is raised into its uppermost position. By actuating the above-mentioned shaking device on the supporting table 20 all the veneer sheets are brought into a position with their lower edges resting firmly on the supporting table 20.

The operator then actuates the hydraulic device 14 for closing the pressing beams 10 and 11, and the cylinder 22 for lowering the supporting table 20. As soon as the supporting table 20 reaches a predetermined lowered position, it or a part of its lever system 21 strikes against a switch contact 29 which initiates the feed movement of the upper and lower supports 4 and 3 with the tools 5 and 6 and the glue applying device 8. The tools 5 and 6 are then guided along the under edge of the pile of veneer sheets and work these lower edges. The upper support 4 shiftable on the lower support 3 is pushed back by an abutment bar 31 (Fig. 2) and, as this movement continues, the upper or the lower support strikes against a switch 32 which stops the upper or the lower support, respectively. At the end of this first working operation the pile of veneer sheets 52 will, when the motor 16 is switched on, be turned with the pressing beams 10 and 1.1 between which it is pressed, and by suitably adjusting the cam disc 17 in relation to the control abutment 18, the turning movement will end exactly after a rotation through 180. The supporting table 20 is then run under the pile of veneer sheets 52, the pressing beams 10 and 11 are moved apart and the edges of the veneer sheets, which were previously open and are now at the bottom, are leveled up or aligned in the plane of the supporting table 20, if necessary with the aid of the shaking device. The table 20 is subsequently again run into its highest position, the pressing beams 10 and 11 are brought into the closed position and the table 20 is set in motion in a downward direction.

During this period of time and after the breaking of the contact at 18, the lower support 3 with the upper support 4 shifted towards the rear, has again returned into its initial position so that another abutment bar similar to the bar 31 shifts the upper support 4 forwardly and the movement is terminated by actuating a contact 33.

As soon as the descending supporting table 20 actuates the switch contact 29, the tool carriage is again set in motion so that the tools 5 and 6 work the second longitudinal edge of the pile of veneer sheets. When the carriage has come to rest on the switch 32, the motor 16 is again switched on, but now in the opposite direction, until a turning movement through 90 has been carried out by suitably adjusting the cam disc 17 and the contact 19.

The pressing beams 10 and 11 are moved apart and a pushing device 34 set in operation which pushes the pile of veneer sheets worked on two longitudinal edges onto a delivery table 35 and a conveyor belt 36 cooperating therewith. As soon as the pushing device 34 has returned into its initial position, the two pressing beams 10 and 11 are turned again through an angle of 90, whereupon the machine is once more in its initial position and ready to receive another pile of veneer sheets.

This veneer edge smoothing machine equipped with pressing beams 10 and 11, supporting table 20 and tools 5 and 6 has in a modified form of construction shown in Figs. 7 to 10, a feeding device with a bedplate 40 arranged at the intake end of the machine. Laterally of this bedplate 40 lifting cylinders 41 are arranged which are connected to a support 39 capable of being swung about a horizontal axis through an angle of out of a horizontal into a vertical position and back.

A carriage 42 is slidable on the support 39 and has arms 49a, consisting of juxtaposed grid bars, and bolder fingers 49 arranged at a certain distance from each other and parallel to the arms 4901. A supporting surface 50 composed for example of tubes, stands at right angles to these arms 49a and the holder fingers 49 and cooperates with a shaking arrangement composed of resiliently mounted pins 51.

When the support 39 is in the vertical position (Fig. 8) the veneers 52 are pushed between the arms 49a and the holder fingers 49 so that their lower edges rest on the supporting surface 50. By means of a foot-operated switch or the like, a motor 47 is switched on which, through the intermediary of a pair of gear Wheels, drives a cam shaft 46 which in turn actuates the pins 51 (see Fig. 7) of the shaking arrangement. The veneer sheets, under the action of the rapid succession of jolts imparted by the pins of the shaking arrangement, are lifted by these pins and again drop back on the supporting surface 50 so that their edges are brought into alignment.

When the edges of the veneers have been brought into alignment, the holder fingers 49, which are controlled by pressure cylinders 4% (see Fig. 7), press the veneers 52 against the arms 49a. The support 39 and the carriage 42 slidable thereon with the firmly held veneers 52 are swung into a horizontal position by the lifting cylinders 41.

A telescopic cylinder 48 (see Fig. 7) then shifts the carriage 42 in a forward direction and thus brings the veneers 52 between the open pressing beams 10 and 1-1. The arms 49a are then in a slightly raised position (see Fig. 10) which is produced by cams 45b arranged on a shaft 43 carrying a pinion 45a. Shortly before the carriage 42 with the veneers 52 reaches its end position, a rack 44 (see Fig. 10) serving as an abutment comes with one of its ends into contact with the pressing beam 10. The carriage 42 nevertheless continues to move on. As a result the pinion 45a arranged under the arms 49a rotates with the cam shaft 43 with which it is connected. Thus the arms 49a descend and deposit the veneers on the inner side of the pressing beam 10 without disturbing them.

When the veneers have been pressed together by the pressing beam 11 of the actual edge smoothing machine descending them from above, the carriage 42 runs back into its rearward horizontal initial position and at the same time the arms 49a move out of slots provided in the pressing beam 10. During this return movement, the holder fingers 49 rise and the other end of the rack 44 strikes against an abutment. As a result the cam shaft 43 rotates in the opposite direction with the pinion 45a and the arms 49a moving into their raised position. Thereupon the support 39 is again swung through 90 and the carriage is then ready for again introducing veneers.

In the meanwhile the veneers pressed together by the beams 10 and 11 in the edge smoothing machine are worked along the edges which have already been aligned, and turned once or several times so that the opposite edges can also be straightened up. This is effected with the aid of the supporting table 20 which is mounted to move up and down and cooperates with a shaking device.

According to Figs. 7, 8, 9, and 11 a discharging arrangement with arms 58, engaging in the slots of the lower pressing beam after the veneers between the pressing beams 10 and 11 have been worked on both sides or edges, is arranged at the delivery end of the veneer edge smoothing machine. For this purpose a carriage 53 on which the arms 58 are located is shifted by hydraulic cylinders 57 from the rear side towards the pressing beams 10 and 11. A rack 55 runs against the pressing beam 10 and a pinion 56 rotates and causes cams to turn; the arms 58 are raised and "lift the veneers off the inner side of the 'pressin g beam 10. By reversing the cylinders 57 the carriage 53 runs back and thereby discharges the veneer edge smoothing machine. The rack 55 runs in its end position against another abutment so that the arms '58 are again lowered through the intermediary of the pinion 56 and the cams 59. V

The sequence of operations above described takes place within the limits of the total working procedure of the machine.

The feeding and discharging arrangements above described are characterized by extreme simplicity. The feeding arrangement performs part of the work of the veneer edge smoothing machine so that the working time is considerably reduced and a favorable output of veneers per unit of time is ensured.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

I claim:

1. A veneer edge smoothing machine, comprising in combination a clamping device composed of pressing beams for clamping packs of veneers pivotable about an axis extending substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the beams, a supporting table for aligning the edges of the packs of veneers, at least one tool for working the veneer edges, said clamping device being rotatable through an angle of 360 for smoothing the edges on both sides of the pack and said supporting table being shiftable out of the range of the veneers aligned in the smoothing plane to afford free passage to the tool.

2. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the clamping device comprises a pressure-medium-actuated device for adjusting one of the pressing beams in relation to the other which is stationary, and a driving device for turning the clamping device at a time through 180 inone direction and through 90 in the other direction of rotation.

3. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein switch and contact means are provided for controlling the turning movements of the clamping device. I

4. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein the supporting table is provided with a pressure-medium operated raising and lowering device for changing the elevation of said table and with a shaking arrangement.

5. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a tool carriage equipped with at least one smoothing tool and a glue applying device is movable along the aligned downwardly hanging veneer edges.

6. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a tool carriage is arranged to travel along the aligned downwardly hanging edges of the pack of veneers in a longitudinal direction and a transverse carriage in which the smoothing tool is mounted is slidable on the longitudinal carriage, and an abutment means is arranged at the end of the travel movement of the longitudinal carriage to shift said transverse carriage with the smoothing tool at right angles to the smoothing direction into and out of the zone for working the veneer edges.

7. A veneer edge smoothing machine'as set forth in claim 1, wherein an abutment switch cooperating with a motor is arranged on the supporting table for starting up the smoothing movement of the smoothing tool and an end switch is provided for stopping this movement.

. .A en e s th hin a se fo th i claim 1 wherein a longitudinal tool carriage is arranged to travel along the aligned downwardlyhanging edges of the pack of veneers ,to be smoothed .and the clamping device includes limit switch means for controlling the turning movement of the clamping device and initiating the return movement "of the longitudinal tool carriage, other limit switch means being provided for stopping said return movement.

9. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a carrier table turnable through an angle of with the aid of pressure medium is arranged above the rotatable clamping device and in horizontal position receives the pack of veneers and in vertical position delivers it to the clamping device.

10. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a carrier table turnable through an angle of 90 with the aid of pressure medium is arranged above the rotatable clamping device and in horizontal position receives the pack of veneers and in vertical position delivers it to the clamping device, a pressure-mediumactuated clamping device for holding the pack of veneers being provided on the carrier table.

11. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a pressure-medium-actuated pushing device acting in a horizontal direction is provided at the height of the pivot axis of the clamping device for pushing the pack of veneers, smoothed on both side edges and possibly also provided with glue, out of the clamping device.

12. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein endless conveyor belts are provided one for feeding the veneers individually into the machine to build up a pack and the other for leading off the pack of veneers smoothed on both side edges and provided with glue.

13. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a reciprocating feeding arrangement is arranged in front of the rotatable clamping device and has arms which, during the forward movement of the arrangement, engage between the beams of the clYnTpTng device to introduce the veneers therein.

14. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, wherein a reciprocating discharging device is arranged behind the clamping device at the delivery end of the machine and this discharging device has arms which, during the forward movement of the discharging device, engage between the beams of the clamping device to remove the pack of veneers therefrom.

15. In a veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 1, a reciprocating feeding arrangement mounted on the intake side of the machine and a discharging arrangement on the delivery side thereof, both these arrangements being provided with arms consisting of grid bars engaging between the beams of the clamping device for introducing the pack of veneers into the clamping device and removing it therefrom respectively, cam shafts being provided for raising and lowering said arms.

16. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 15, wherein at least'one of the pressing beams of the clamping device is provided with apertures in which the grid bars engage.

17. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 16, wherein all the arms are capable of swinging about a horizontal axis and the arms of the feeding arrangement are hinged on a slidable carriage which is pivotally mounted.

18. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 16, wherein holder fingers for the veneers are arranged at a distance above the arms.

19. A veneer edge smoothing machine as set forth in claim 16, wherein holder fingers for the veneers are arranged at a distance above the arms and a supporting surface cooperating with a shaking device is arranged on a carriage at right angles to the arms and bolder fingers.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Bailey Aug. 12, 1941 

